Single-crystal X-ray diffraction of fluorapatite to 61 GPa

Apatite is a mineral of widespread importance in Earth and planetary science. Here we examine the behavior of a natural fluorapatite (FAp) crystal from Durango (Mexico) under compression to 61 GPa. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction experiments were carried out in a diamond-anvil cell using a synchrotron source. The apatite structure persists up to 32.4 GPa. Birch-Murnaghan equation of state parameters were fit to the pressure-volume data for fluorapatite for two cases: fixing V0 at its measured ambient value resulted in a bulk modulus, K-0T, of 97.0(8) GPa and a pressure derivative of the bulk modulus, K'(0T), of 3.3(1), while fixing V-0 and K-0T at its ambient value 90.5 GPa (derived from ultrasonically measured elastic constants) resulted in a K'(0T) value of 4.1(1). At 35.6 GPa, fluorapatite transforms to a triclinic phase (P1, Z = 4), designated here as fluorapatite II (FAp-II). This phase persists up to at least 61 GPa. The major structural differences between FAp and FAp-II involve the buckling of the Ca polyhedra along the c-axis and changes in the number and coordination of the Ca sites. Our study extends the pressure range over which fluorapatite has been examined by more than a factor of three, providing new insights into its structural response to high-pressure conditions.

Automated summary

In this study, the behavior of a natural fluorapatite crystal under compression was examined. The results showed that the apatite structure remained stable up to 32.4 GPa, and then transformed into a triclinic phase at 35.6 GPa. The study extended the pressure range over which fluorapatite has been examined, providing new insights into its structural response to high-pressure conditions.